Re-register now: First batch of UAE SIM card deactivation starts from January 17

Mobile subscribers of etisalat and du who receive SMS to complete re-registration process and fail to do so to be affected

By

Parag Deulgaonkar

PublishedSunday, January 06, 2013

Mobile subscribers of etisalat and du, UAE telecom operators, who have received SMS to complete their re-registration process but fail to do so, will have their numbers deactivated from January 17.

“If you have got a SMS to re-register your number, then you have to complete the process before January 16. If you fail to then your number will be deactivated,” an etisalat call centre employee said.

She added: “It is only for those subscribers who have got received the re-registration SMS. You have to fill the re-registration form and provide UAE National Card or a valid passport and visa.”

A du call centre executive said: “We will be deactivating numbers from January 17. You have to proceed to our nearest outlet and register before January 16.

In October, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) had extended the deadline for the re-registration of mobile subscribers under the "My Number, My Identity" campaign after etisalat and du were unable to provide smooth mechanisms to facilitate, accelerate and stimulate subscribers to update their data.

The TRA also instructed the operators to speed up the launch of the online registration services to accelerate the process and ease the load on the commercial outlets. However, no online registration service has yet been introduced.